Are you one of the 9 out of 10 people in America who are not reaching the minimum recommendation for whole grains (the minimum rec. is 48 grams of whole grain, or 3 servings, per day)? Are you one of the 4 out of 10 Americans who consumes less than one whole grain product in a two week period?! (Source: Today’s Dietitian Magazine)

Why are whole grains so important? Check out this article to find out.

A while back I posted a day of my eats and I realized I wasn’t getting enough servings of grains, according to MyPlate, which recommends that I consume about 6 servings of grains per day. I was (and still am) getting closer to 4 servings of grain, which is fine with me, as I think 6 servings is too much for my needs, personally. I was reaching the minimum amount of whole grains (3), so I still felt confident that I was eating right.

*** If you go to MyPlate and find out how many servings of grains you need, just take half of that and that’s how many servings of whole grains you should consume each day. ***

Apparently in 2009 there were about 3000 new products released with whole grains, compared to year 2000, which had only about 164 new products released with whole grains. In addition, many restaurants (including fast food) are jumping on the bandwagon and including whole grains on their menus. So we no longer have an excuse to not reach our whole grain goal.

It’s a fact that most American’s consume a majority of their whole grains at breakfast. I know I do!

1.5 servings of whole grain (24 grams) in my morning oats

I always look for the Whole Grains Stamp on my grain products. If a food has 8 grams of whole grain, or more, it can bare this symbol. LOOK FOR IT!

And when we don’t go through them fast enough, I make them into tortilla chips.

(Cut them into rectangles, spray with EVOO, sprinkle with a dash of salt and some garlic powder).

Bake at a low temperature (~200) for about 20 minutes, while continuing to watch them in order to prevent burning.

Something Nick has been doing lately (and I’m very happy about) is buying the burrito bowl at Chipotle……

Then when we get home he adds it to our whole grain tortillas! It definitely beats the tortilla at Chipotle, which has ZERO whole grains, and tons of lard (I don’t do this because I can’t eat our tortillas. Does anyone know of a wheat-free tortilla?!).

Other Favorite Whole Grains

Popcorn

Quinoa

Brown Rice

Oatmeal

Whole Wheat products

Wild Rice

Bulgar

QUESTION: What’s your favorite whole grain and what are some ways you make sure to get them in your diet? While traveling for training I struggle to eat very healthy and I have found it hard to consume 3 servings of whole grain. An item I have been buying a lot is sushi made with brown rice. It’s definitely helped me reach my 3 serving goal!

Coming Up/Training Update

I’m on my way back to Pittsburgh tomorrow morning, for my last week of training (well, sort of). As I said in my last post I will be starting at another store in Columbus (yeah!) at the beginning of August.

I have a couple things I want to say. First, I updated the list of food I eat at night, on yesterday’s post, so if you were one of the first 15 people to read it and you want a really candid view, check out the “night time eating” section again! I realized I wasn’t completely honest, so I added more foods as I thought about it more. I do more mindless eating than I thought (I paid attention to it last night), so if you’re curious, check it out.

Second, I was wrong about 1/2 cup cooked vegetables counting as 1 cup of vegetables, apparently that’s not true anymore! Yikes, I need to update my MyPyramid knowledge. It is true for some veggies, mainly leafy greens. To learn more, click here. That being said, I only counted cooked veggies as 1 cup one time, so I still reached my fruit and veggie goal.

I received a lot of questions on yesterday’s post. I tried to answer most of them, but some of you don’t have blogs so I don’t know how to contact you. Please leave your e-mail if you ask a question, thanks! If you asked about Nutritional Yeast, click the link to read more. Here are a couple of questions I received:

Q:I get really bad stomach pains occasionally from eating certain foods and have to take gas X. I don’t take it consistently because I’m afraid that taking too much gas X or beano would have negative effects on me somehow. So sometimes I just suffer through the pain! I know from reading your blog that you rely on beano and (I think) Gas x for your stomach and I was wondering what your opinion was about taking these regularly!

A:This really depends on what you mean by “stomach pain”. If it’s gas and bloating, I say take the Gas X, if it helps. But remember, Gas X will not prevent gas and bloating, it will help relieve your gas and bloating (aka, it helps you fart!). If you want to prevent it in the first place, take Beano. I really don’t think you can take too much Beano, as there is no note on the bottle as far as how many to consume in a day. It’s very safe, and very effective. Rather than being afraid to eat veggies, I say take Beano whenever you can! As for the Gas X, the box says no more than 4 in a 24 hour period. If you take Beano, you shouldn’t really need the Gas X, but if your stomach pain isn’t from gas and bloating, you may want to see a doctor.

Q: Do you follow a general calorie allowance each day? or just follow your hunger cues? how often do you work out? do you incorporate both strength and cardio?

A: I typically consume around 1700-2400 calories a day (2400 on weekends because we eat out and I usually have drinks). I don’t count calories, and I do eat by my hunger cues (intuitively!), but I have counted my calories before so I know the rough estimate of how many calories I consume. I workout 5 days a week, for 45-60 minutes each time. I do pilates and/or yoga twice a week, weights (using the band, and 8 pound weights for my arms and legs) about 3 times a week, and the elliptical or treadmill 4-5 times a week, for 30-40 minutes each time. I am also very active during the day, and rarely sit. This helps. Exercise is NOT the only thing you should do to maintain weight. If you aren’t active during the day, exercise isn’t going to make much of a difference. I stand all day, rather than sitting. If you can do that, I suggest it (I put my laptop on my ironing board!)

Quick, Cheap, and Healthy Recipe #13Mock Pesto and Noodles

I love pesto sauce, who the heck doesn’t?! But I don’t always have the ingredients on hand. For my 2010 cookbook I wanted to come up with a recipe for pesto that uses ingredients that most people have in their home, which is really the purpose of my cookbook. With this idea I decided to try my own version of pesto, using dried basil and walnuts (or any nut). Thanks to my handy-dandy Magic Bullet, this was achievable.

I used brown rice pasta, which is both gluten and wheat free (yeah!). For anyone who is on a gluten or wheat free diet, I recommend this product as an alternative to whole wheat noodles. The nutrition facts are fairly similar, although the brown rice pasta has less protein (kind of a bummer if you are a vegetarian).

DirectionsThrow all ingredients together in a blender or Magic Bullet, and blend!

**NOTE: If you are following a low FODMAPs diet, be aware that the half and half and garlic powder contains FODMAPs. You could use a garlic-infused oil instead, and omit the garlic powder, but if you’re lactose intolerant the half and half may cause problems. Look for a dairy-free half and half or take a Lactaid pill if you want to try this recipe!

Gina, The Candid RD

I'm a registered dietitian working hard to dispel nutrition myths, and to teach people how to live healthy lives without deprivation. My goal is to make nutrition simple, fun and delicious! I also follow a low FODMAPs diet for IBS. Feel free to contact me with questions.

Cooking With Paige

A story book that details a healthy trip through the grocery store, complete with a few recipes for your young ones!

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Disclaimer

This blog is meant to teach and inform you about nutrition and nutrition-related information. It serves as an outlet for my own personal opinions, but is not meant to be used as an absolute source of information. Before using this information to make any changes to your diet or lifestyle, I recommend that you talk to your doctor or local registered dietitian (contact me for options). Also, my low-FODMAPs recipes and recipe modifications are based on research done by the Monash University. Please contact me if you see something that you believe is inaccurate. I like to help, not confuse.